salmon Plug Lakers

Great opening day.... first time using down-rigger on the outback ( Learned a lot ) and first time doing 20km+ peddling.
- Barbs were removed after the first fish... all fish were released un harmed

another

another one

look at the happy yaker!..... we had to work hard for these  ( 20+KM ) Luckily no wind and glass water conditions.

Very nice! What sort of plugs were you pulling? Almost looks like a wiggle wart.

Nice!  What lake were you fishing in, how deep was the water you were trolling in, and were the lake trout on the bottom or suspended?

Out here in Montana, lake trout are regarded as an invasive species which is endangering bull trout and west slope cutthroat, so we whack them on the head and take them home and eat them.  They're excellent cooked and excellent smoked, similar to salmon.

Very nice! What sort of plugs were you pulling? Almost looks like a wiggle wart.

Thanks Matt.... Lyman Plug - Snow white #327

Nice!  What lake were you fishing in, how deep was the water you were trolling in, and were the lake trout on the bottom or suspended?

Out here in Montana, lake trout are regarded as an invasive species which is endangering bull trout and west slope cutthroat, so we whack them on the head and take them home and eat them.  They're excellent cooked and excellent smoked, similar to salmon.

 Cold Lake Alberta, over 60-90' of water ... as this was my first time using the down-rigger  ( Learning the ropes )... and since I used to lite of a weight (2 lb) and my fish finder was not catching my ball...we guessed ( using math , and the down rigger cable angle ) roughly 40-50 feet suspended.

Nice!  What lake were you fishing in, how deep was the water you were trolling in, and were the lake trout on the bottom or suspended?

Out here in Montana, lake trout are regarded as an invasive species which is endangering bull trout and west slope cutthroat, so we whack them on the head and take them home and eat them.  They're excellent cooked and excellent smoked, similar to salmon.

 Cold Lake Alberta, over 60-90' of water ... as this was my first time using the down-rigger  ( Learning the ropes )... and since I used to lite of a weight (2 lb) and my fish finder was not catching my ball...we guessed ( using math , and the down rigger cable angle ) roughly 40-50 feet suspended.

The Scotty Laketroller is rated to handle up to a 4 pound downrigger weight, and you should certainly get a four pound weight.  With a 4 pound weight, depending on how fast you are trolling, the amount of drag created by your lure, and the degrees of width of the cone of your sonar, you can probably troll down to about 75 feet before the weight gets blown back out of the cone of your sonar and you can no longer see it.

I've mounted a Scotty Laketroller on a Trident, and a Scotty Depthmaster and a Cannon Lake-Troll on my Revolution.  The Scotty Laketroller is inexpensive and easy to mount, and is a good way to get introduced to downrigger trolling.  But it has a primitive brake system and can only handle a four pound weight.  If you like downrigger trolling (and considering the lake trout you caught on your first attempt, you ought to like it), consider moving up to a bigger downrigger which has a better brake or clutch, which is easier to use, and which can handle a bigger weight.  My favorite downrigger is the Cannon Lake-Troll, and I routinely troll down to about 170 feet with an 8 pound weight.

Thanks Pete... your probably right maybe one size bigger down rigger as I'd like to go with a 6 lb weight as my Kayak compadre (Ravyak) was using a 4 lb and said that if he lets out the whole 100' of cable and having a 45 degree angle says its roughly 70-75 feet actual depth after blow back.... Next year purchase

You can get a modest improvement in the performance of your Scotty Laketroller by replacing the steel cable which comes with the downrigger with Scotty Spectra low-drag braided downrigger line.  Changing to spectra will also get rid of the irritating hum created by steel cables.

I routinely down rig troll at 30' to 120' in my PA-14 using a 4.25# weight connected to my 12 volt DC, electric Cannon Mini-Mag down rigger....I have the same 175# test Scotty low drag line installed as pmmpete described above.....the 12 volt downrigger is a life saver for me and if you can afford one, it's the real deal for fishing at depth.

Today, fishing at 3200' elevation, I covered 6.6 miles in 4 hours, pulling a T50 size flatfish at 110' deep.....since I am not as young as most of you guys, I can tell you that my ass was dragging when I called it a day....and I am in good shape for a mid-70's guy.
I don't know how pmmpete can drag around a 8 pound ball for any long distance, but my hat is off to him!

Down rig fishing adds another dimension, to lake fishing for large trout, but be prepared for a "extra added workout" when the wind comes up

Today, fishing at 3200' elevation, I covered 6.6 miles in 4 hours, pulling a T50 size flatfish at 110' deep.....since I am not as young as most of you guys, I can tell you that my ass was dragging when I called it a day....and I am in good shape for a mid-70's guy.
I don't know how pmmpete can drag around a 8 pound ball for any long distance, but my hat is off to him!

I don't notice that much difference in drag between a 4 pound, a 6 pound, and an 8 pound downrigger weight.  But Flatfish and Kwickfish style lures have a lot more drag than most other lures.  Below perhaps 80 feet I switch to lower drag lures such as Rapala-style lures or B2 squid rigs, because they don't pull my downrigger weight back as much.

Today, fishing at 3200' elevation, I covered 6.6 miles in 4 hours, pulling a T50 size flatfish at 110' deep.....since I am not as young as most of you guys, I can tell you that my ass was dragging when I called it a day....and I am in good shape for a mid-70's guy.
I don't know how pmmpete can drag around a 8 pound ball for any long distance, but my hat is off to him!

I don't notice that much difference in drag between a 4 pound, a 6 pound, and an 8 pound downrigger weight.  But Flatfish and Kwickfish style lures have a lot more drag than most other lures.  Below perhaps 80 feet I switch to lower drag lures such as Rapala-style lures or B2 squid rigs, because they don't pull my downrigger weight back as much.

I use a Scotty Laketroller with either a 4# or a 6# weight, which it can handle.  On lakes, with no real current to speak of, and at the relatively slow trolling speeds for trout, I don't regularly go above 4# weight and I do get good depth control.  I use 65# spectra for the downrigger line, which has relatively low drag, I gotta believe much lower than 175# scotty line.

-Allen

Agree about the extra drag of flatfish and quickfish larger lures. I have one Rapala articulated body lure that I can try at the deeper depths. As suggested above, the drag resistance will decrease and hopefully it's productive too.
I have avoided the Rapala since the flatfish/quick fish are proven lures for me......thanks for the suggestion.

Re the 175 # Scotty line......its much quieter than the Canon braided wire cable and I noticed it's less drag when I changed over a couple of years ago....not sure if going to 65 # spectra will buy me a real improvement on drag reduction......I like the 175 #  Scotty line just for the extra security against breakage.....if I lost my downrigger weight, that's a $50 hit.